1 00:00:00,000 –> 00:00:05,240 Now, one of the reasons I think we have great joy as a congregation is that over these last 2 00:00:05,240 –> 00:00:09,720 months there have been many people who have come to faith in Jesus Christ. 3 00:00:09,720 –> 00:00:13,180 Let me speak to you for just a moment. 4 00:00:13,180 –> 00:00:18,200 You’ve come to see that you’re a sinner who needs a Savior. 5 00:00:18,200 –> 00:00:24,660 You’ve come to see that Jesus Christ is precisely the Savior you need. 6 00:00:24,660 –> 00:00:28,920 And so as best you know, you have told him that you believe in him, and you have decided 7 00:00:29,020 –> 00:00:30,020 to follow him. 8 00:00:30,020 –> 00:00:34,259 And of course the big question is, where do you go now from here? 9 00:00:34,259 –> 00:00:38,439 Well, that’s the question that we’re going to seek to answer from the Bible over these 10 00:00:38,439 –> 00:00:40,939 next 10 weeks. 11 00:00:40,939 –> 00:00:46,240 Now there are other folks among us who are still thinking the claims of Jesus Christ 12 00:00:46,240 –> 00:00:47,619 through. 13 00:00:47,619 –> 00:00:52,720 You have begun to explore what Christians believe, and you sometimes wonder, now what 14 00:00:52,720 –> 00:00:57,200 would it be like if I followed Jesus Christ? 15 00:00:57,200 –> 00:00:58,520 What should I expect? 16 00:00:58,520 –> 00:00:59,520 What will it cost? 17 00:00:59,520 –> 00:01:01,779 Is this something that I can really do? 18 00:01:01,779 –> 00:01:08,059 Well, if that’s where you are then these next weeks will give to you an inside look 19 00:01:08,059 –> 00:01:10,639 at the realities of the Christian life. 20 00:01:10,639 –> 00:01:16,099 Now I have three aims for this series that is going to run over these next 10 weeks. 21 00:01:16,099 –> 00:01:20,480 The first is very simply that we will learn the Christian life. 22 00:01:20,480 –> 00:01:26,360 This is going to be a series not about what Christians believe, but about how Christians 23 00:01:26,360 –> 00:01:27,959 live. 24 00:01:28,000 –> 00:01:35,019 More than any other book of the bible, 1 Peter is about the experience of the Christian life. 25 00:01:35,019 –> 00:01:39,540 It is, if you like, a manual for discipleship. 26 00:01:39,540 –> 00:01:43,980 And I think that it’s very significant that God the Holy Spirit moved Peter to write this 27 00:01:43,980 –> 00:01:46,099 particular book in the new testament. 28 00:01:46,099 –> 00:01:50,699 Remember, of course he was the leading disciple of Jesus, and he knew from his own experience 29 00:01:50,699 –> 00:01:53,199 the highs and lows of the Christian life. 30 00:01:53,279 –> 00:01:58,019 He was the one who confessed that Jesus is the Christ, he was also the one who denied 31 00:01:58,019 –> 00:02:00,040 that Jesus is the Christ. 32 00:02:00,040 –> 00:02:01,660 Denied that he ever knew Jesus. 33 00:02:01,660 –> 00:02:06,680 He walked on water because of his great faith, he nearly drowned because of his weak faith. 34 00:02:06,680 –> 00:02:11,440 So, the grace of God touched this man in the highs and lows of his life, and the Spirit 35 00:02:11,440 –> 00:02:17,199 of God prompted him to write this special letter in the new testament that really sets 36 00:02:17,199 –> 00:02:21,199 out the experience of the Christian life. 37 00:02:21,419 –> 00:02:25,759 Now, if you have your bibles open, as I hope you do, you’ll notice that right at the beginning 38 00:02:25,779 –> 00:02:30,479 he identifies his audience, and that’s important. 39 00:02:30,479 –> 00:02:39,279 If you’re into email, you probably have several screen names and your multiple screen names 40 00:02:39,279 –> 00:02:43,720 are different ways of describing or identifying yourself. 41 00:02:43,720 –> 00:02:49,619 Now, if we think of this letter as being like an email, Peter begins by filling in the send 42 00:02:49,619 –> 00:02:55,460 box, and he puts in there five screen names for Christian believers. 43 00:02:55,460 –> 00:02:56,460 Notice them. 44 00:02:56,460 –> 00:02:59,339 They are God’s elect. 45 00:02:59,339 –> 00:03:02,039 They are strangers in the world. 46 00:03:02,039 –> 00:03:04,339 They are chosen by God. 47 00:03:04,339 –> 00:03:05,660 They are set apart. 48 00:03:05,660 –> 00:03:07,179 That’s what the word sanctified means. 49 00:03:07,179 –> 00:03:13,220 They are set apart by the Holy Spirit for obedience to Jesus, and they are sprinkled 50 00:03:13,220 –> 00:03:15,380 by the blood of Christ. 51 00:03:15,380 –> 00:03:22,000 If you are in Jesus Christ, if you have come to be joined to him by faith, then all these 52 00:03:22,000 –> 00:03:24,179 things are true of you. 53 00:03:24,179 –> 00:03:27,500 Every one of these screen names fits you. 54 00:03:27,500 –> 00:03:30,199 Now, that’s the audience. 55 00:03:30,199 –> 00:03:31,919 What about the purpose? 56 00:03:31,919 –> 00:03:36,779 If you turn just two pages over to 1 Peter, chapter 5, and verse 12, we really are going 57 00:03:36,779 –> 00:03:37,779 to stay in this book. 58 00:03:37,779 –> 00:03:40,259 So you won’t have to move more than a couple of pages. 59 00:03:40,259 –> 00:03:43,559 Notice, he gives a clear statement of why he wrote the letter. 60 00:03:43,559 –> 00:03:48,839 In 1 Peter 5, 12, with the help of Silas, whom I regard as a faithful brother, I have 61 00:03:48,839 –> 00:03:55,339 written to you briefly, encouraging you and testifying that this is the true grace of 62 00:03:55,339 –> 00:03:56,339 God. 63 00:03:56,339 –> 00:03:58,580 Stand fast in it. 64 00:03:58,580 –> 00:04:06,259 In other words, he is writing so that these young Christians may know that they have the 65 00:04:06,259 –> 00:04:07,419 real deal. 66 00:04:08,020 –> 00:04:13,679 You may face great difficulties, he says to them, but don’t ever forget that what you’ve 67 00:04:13,699 –> 00:04:19,380 got in Jesus Christ is the true grace of God. 68 00:04:19,380 –> 00:04:22,339 So stand fast in it, stick with it. 69 00:04:22,339 –> 00:04:26,320 And we’re not going to learn the Christian life from this book. 70 00:04:26,320 –> 00:04:31,739 We’re going to learn how to learn from the Bible. 71 00:04:31,739 –> 00:04:37,220 1 Peter has always had a very special place in my own life for this reason. 72 00:04:38,100 –> 00:04:45,660 My own pastor, as I grew up, Derek Prime, was deeply convinced that the best way to 73 00:04:45,660 –> 00:04:52,540 equip new believers in the Christian faith was to teach them 1 Peter. 74 00:04:52,540 –> 00:04:59,059 And his reason for this conviction was very simple, that 1 Peter covers all the key issues 75 00:04:59,059 –> 00:05:02,820 of the Christian life in one book. 76 00:05:02,899 –> 00:05:11,579 Now, the problem with many discipleship manuals that you can buy is that they send you jumping 77 00:05:11,579 –> 00:05:17,359 around all over the Bible, which is very confusing for a young Christian. 78 00:05:17,359 –> 00:05:22,399 You know, you get a verse from Ephesians, and then three verses thrown in from Proverbs, 79 00:05:22,399 –> 00:05:26,519 and then a great insight from the second book of Samuel, or something like this. 80 00:05:26,820 –> 00:05:32,179 And that is a very unnatural way to study the Bible. 81 00:05:32,179 –> 00:05:35,559 It is very confusing to a young Christian. 82 00:05:35,559 –> 00:05:39,640 It tends to give the impression that the teacher knows a great deal about the Bible because 83 00:05:39,640 –> 00:05:43,459 he or she knows, you know, where to gather all these nuggets from all over the place. 84 00:05:43,459 –> 00:05:47,660 But it leaves the new Christian feeling, Oh, well, I could never do that because I would 85 00:05:47,660 –> 00:05:50,220 never know where to look. 86 00:05:50,959 –> 00:05:58,739 Now, the beauty of this approach is that you will learn how to learn from the Bible. 87 00:05:58,739 –> 00:06:04,359 In other words, by the end of our 10-week series, you will feel that you could go on 88 00:06:04,359 –> 00:06:09,720 your own to another book of the Bible and learn from it in the same way as we have learned 89 00:06:09,720 –> 00:06:11,540 together from 1 Peter. 90 00:06:11,540 –> 00:06:17,779 Now, for that reason, I want to encourage you to bring your own Bible on these Sunday 91 00:06:17,779 –> 00:06:18,779 mornings. 92 00:06:18,820 –> 00:06:22,820 I know we have these church Bibles and they’re great, but you’re not supposed to take them 93 00:06:22,820 –> 00:06:26,540 home and you’re definitely not allowed to write in them. 94 00:06:26,540 –> 00:06:30,739 Bring your own Bible, because then you can underline it if you want to do that. 95 00:06:30,739 –> 00:06:32,500 You can mark it up. 96 00:06:32,500 –> 00:06:39,579 You will find that by the end of this fall season, your Bible will fall open almost spontaneously 97 00:06:39,579 –> 00:06:47,779 at 1 Peter and that even if you, at this point, know almost nothing else about the Bible, 98 00:06:47,779 –> 00:06:55,359 you will know one book of the Bible well, and you will have grasped all the key things 99 00:06:55,359 –> 00:06:59,420 that you need to know about the Christian life. 100 00:06:59,420 –> 00:07:02,420 So we’re going to learn the Christian life, we’re going to learn how to learn from the 101 00:07:02,420 –> 00:07:07,279 Bible, and then thirdly, we’re going to learn what God wants us to know. 102 00:07:07,279 –> 00:07:13,760 Now, another great advantage it seems to me of doing basic discipleship this way is that 103 00:07:13,760 –> 00:07:16,820 God sets the curriculum. 104 00:07:16,859 –> 00:07:18,640 Let me explain what I mean by that. 105 00:07:18,640 –> 00:07:27,000 You see, Peter was writing to new believers under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, 106 00:07:27,000 –> 00:07:33,179 and we’re going to work on the assumption that everything that God the Holy Spirit prompted 107 00:07:33,179 –> 00:07:39,540 Peter to write for them is also relevant for us. 108 00:07:39,540 –> 00:07:46,160 What God knew young Christians needed to get grounded in the first century is the same 109 00:07:46,160 –> 00:07:53,540 as what God knows young Christians need to get grounded in the twenty-first century. 110 00:07:53,540 –> 00:08:01,200 Now I think this is important, because quite honestly if I had been asked to write a curriculum 111 00:08:01,200 –> 00:08:10,200 for new believers, I would have done a session on prayer, a session on Bible reading, a session 112 00:08:10,200 –> 00:08:12,339 on witnessing, and so forth and so on. 113 00:08:12,339 –> 00:08:15,399 Would have been fairly predictable. 114 00:08:15,619 –> 00:08:25,420 I certainly would not have included a session on submission, a session on freedom, and a 115 00:08:25,420 –> 00:08:29,700 session on suffering, which Peter includes here. 116 00:08:29,700 –> 00:08:37,559 And actually, when you think about it, these themes are central to the experience of the 117 00:08:37,559 –> 00:08:39,900 Christian life. 118 00:08:39,900 –> 00:08:46,340 So by taking our basic manual of discipleship from the Scriptures themselves, as God has 119 00:08:46,340 –> 00:08:52,940 put this letter into the New Testament for that very purpose, we avoid a curriculum that 120 00:08:52,940 –> 00:08:58,700 is slanted by the prejudices or limited horizons of any given teacher. 121 00:08:58,700 –> 00:09:07,280 Our aim, therefore, is going to simply be that we will come to God’s discipleship manual 122 00:09:07,280 –> 00:09:16,200 and learn it unedited, uncut, as God gave it through the apostle Peter. 123 00:09:16,200 –> 00:09:21,559 And I think that you will find, as many have found over the years, that as this letter 124 00:09:21,559 –> 00:09:30,179 gets inside of you, it will give direction to the whole of your Christian life. 125 00:09:30,179 –> 00:09:35,599 So I do hope that with our appetite whetted, your Bible will now be open at 1 Peter as 126 00:09:35,619 –> 00:09:37,119 we begin together. 127 00:09:37,119 –> 00:09:41,479 You’ve become a Christian. 128 00:09:41,479 –> 00:09:43,359 You’ve said a prayer. 129 00:09:43,359 –> 00:09:47,239 You made a commitment to Jesus. 130 00:09:47,239 –> 00:09:50,380 But what actually happened? 131 00:09:50,380 –> 00:09:53,299 What has changed? 132 00:09:53,299 –> 00:09:59,359 What has really been the content of what has gone on in you? 133 00:10:00,320 –> 00:10:03,299 Now, Peter goes straight to the explanation. 134 00:10:03,299 –> 00:10:04,419 Verse 3, 135 00:10:04,419 –> 00:10:08,559 Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ. 136 00:10:08,559 –> 00:10:12,559 In his great mercy, he has given us new birth 137 00:10:13,679 –> 00:10:14,719 into a living hope 138 00:10:14,719 –> 00:10:17,799 through the resurrection of Jesus from the dead. 139 00:10:17,799 –> 00:10:21,200 New birth, that’s what’s happened to you, 140 00:10:21,200 –> 00:10:23,640 he says to new believers. 141 00:10:24,659 –> 00:10:26,500 Now, there’s a great deal of confusion today 142 00:10:26,559 –> 00:10:28,580 over what is meant by the phrase, 143 00:10:28,580 –> 00:10:31,820 born again, or new birth. 144 00:10:31,820 –> 00:10:36,159 People ask, you know, are you a born again Christian, 145 00:10:36,159 –> 00:10:38,059 and they use that phrase as if 146 00:10:38,059 –> 00:10:41,900 a born again Christian was simply one brand among many. 147 00:10:42,919 –> 00:10:46,659 Now, when the Bible says that you have been born again, 148 00:10:46,659 –> 00:10:48,059 it simply means that God 149 00:10:48,059 –> 00:10:49,859 has brought about a deep change 150 00:10:49,859 –> 00:10:53,380 at the very center or core of your being. 151 00:10:54,299 –> 00:10:57,500 He has given you a new nature, 152 00:10:57,500 –> 00:11:01,140 which means that you have a new disposition, 153 00:11:01,140 –> 00:11:05,340 a new appetite, and a new capacity. 154 00:11:05,340 –> 00:11:09,340 Let’s explore these together, first a new disposition. 155 00:11:09,340 –> 00:11:12,140 See, God created you. 156 00:11:12,140 –> 00:11:14,179 He made you with unique gifts, 157 00:11:14,179 –> 00:11:18,960 personality, temperament, abilities, 158 00:11:18,960 –> 00:11:22,260 and the new birth does not violate 159 00:11:22,299 –> 00:11:23,859 what God has created. 160 00:11:23,859 –> 00:11:25,820 That’s a very important principle. 161 00:11:25,820 –> 00:11:30,820 The new birth does not violate what God has created. 162 00:11:30,859 –> 00:11:35,859 That’s why shy sinners become shy Christians, 163 00:11:37,419 –> 00:11:42,419 and zany sinners become zany Christians, 164 00:11:42,979 –> 00:11:47,979 and cool sinners become cool Christians. 165 00:11:48,780 –> 00:11:52,580 Cautious sinners become cautious Christians. 166 00:11:52,580 –> 00:11:56,080 You see, God does not violate in the new birth 167 00:11:56,080 –> 00:11:58,900 what He has done in creation. 168 00:11:58,900 –> 00:12:00,739 Now God the Holy Spirit will help you 169 00:12:00,739 –> 00:12:04,700 to gain control, mastery over your temperament 170 00:12:04,700 –> 00:12:06,619 so that you are master of your temperament 171 00:12:06,619 –> 00:12:08,859 rather than your temperament being master of you. 172 00:12:08,859 –> 00:12:10,580 He will give you the power to overcome 173 00:12:10,580 –> 00:12:13,119 the effects of sin in your personality 174 00:12:13,119 –> 00:12:17,479 like pride or like greed or like anger, 175 00:12:17,539 –> 00:12:22,380 but God will not override His own work. 176 00:12:22,380 –> 00:12:26,299 He redeems His own work 177 00:12:26,299 –> 00:12:29,359 by giving you a new disposition. 178 00:12:30,419 –> 00:12:33,299 God never made two snowflakes the same 179 00:12:33,299 –> 00:12:37,640 and He certainly never makes two Christians the same. 180 00:12:37,640 –> 00:12:40,179 God takes the unique individuality 181 00:12:40,179 –> 00:12:43,260 that He has created in you 182 00:12:43,260 –> 00:12:46,340 and He moves that in a new direction. 183 00:12:46,359 –> 00:12:48,119 That’s what the new birth is all about. 184 00:12:48,119 –> 00:12:52,260 It is you moving in a new direction. 185 00:12:52,260 –> 00:12:55,159 You feeling in a new way. 186 00:12:55,159 –> 00:12:57,219 You thinking in a new way. 187 00:12:57,219 –> 00:12:59,320 You desiring in a new way. 188 00:12:59,320 –> 00:13:00,599 You willing in a new way. 189 00:13:00,599 –> 00:13:02,020 But it’s you. 190 00:13:02,020 –> 00:13:06,340 God moves you in a new direction. 191 00:13:06,340 –> 00:13:07,440 I think this is important. 192 00:13:07,440 –> 00:13:11,119 I remember very vividly a teenager talking with me. 193 00:13:11,119 –> 00:13:12,880 I’d asked her, what was it that held her back 194 00:13:12,880 –> 00:13:14,020 from being a Christian? 195 00:13:14,859 –> 00:13:17,500 And she was a kind of flighty sort of a person. 196 00:13:17,500 –> 00:13:21,260 And she had been under the influence of a Sunday school 197 00:13:21,260 –> 00:13:25,700 teacher who was as straight and as narrow as they come. 198 00:13:25,700 –> 00:13:27,979 And she had looked at that difference in personality 199 00:13:27,979 –> 00:13:29,340 and seen that this lady, who was 200 00:13:29,340 –> 00:13:31,559 a Christian and a very fine Christian, 201 00:13:31,559 –> 00:13:34,380 was wholly other from what the teenage girl was. 202 00:13:34,380 –> 00:13:37,700 And she said to me, well, I don’t 203 00:13:37,700 –> 00:13:41,159 want to become like Mrs. and then named her. 204 00:13:41,640 –> 00:13:43,979 That’s very fascinating. 205 00:13:43,979 –> 00:13:45,479 You see, what she had not grasped 206 00:13:45,479 –> 00:13:48,440 was that God could take her personality 207 00:13:48,440 –> 00:13:53,359 and make her a unique Christian by moving her 208 00:13:53,359 –> 00:13:55,119 in a whole new direction. 209 00:13:55,119 –> 00:13:56,960 See, this is what happened to Peter. 210 00:13:56,960 –> 00:14:00,280 God took this man with exuberant temperament, with his flare 211 00:14:00,280 –> 00:14:04,039 and with his passion, and moved him in a new direction. 212 00:14:04,039 –> 00:14:07,979 Peter and Thomas, to take two of the disciples, 213 00:14:08,000 –> 00:14:12,619 were completely different men before they met Jesus. 214 00:14:12,619 –> 00:14:14,359 And after they met Jesus, 215 00:14:14,359 –> 00:14:18,000 they were completely different Christian men. 216 00:14:19,099 –> 00:14:21,900 God does not clone Christian believers. 217 00:14:21,900 –> 00:14:24,859 He does not do the cookie cutter kind of thing 218 00:14:24,859 –> 00:14:28,200 to multiply one kind of sameness among his people. 219 00:14:28,200 –> 00:14:31,820 He takes the created individuality 220 00:14:31,820 –> 00:14:34,619 that in itself is a reflection of his glory 221 00:14:34,619 –> 00:14:36,760 even though corrupted by sin, 222 00:14:36,840 –> 00:14:40,640 and he moves what he has placed in you 223 00:14:40,640 –> 00:14:43,260 in a whole new direction. 224 00:14:43,260 –> 00:14:45,059 It’s a wonderful thing. 225 00:14:45,059 –> 00:14:49,020 There is no other Christian in the world like you. 226 00:14:51,119 –> 00:14:53,960 Secondly, he’s not only given you a new disposition, 227 00:14:53,960 –> 00:14:57,000 but says Peter to these believers and to us, 228 00:14:57,000 –> 00:14:59,039 he’s given you a new appetite. 229 00:14:59,039 –> 00:15:02,440 That’s really part of what this new birth is all about 230 00:15:02,440 –> 00:15:06,679 because nature determines appetite 231 00:15:06,679 –> 00:15:09,000 and when we’re born again, you’re given a new nature 232 00:15:09,000 –> 00:15:09,960 and what that means is that 233 00:15:09,960 –> 00:15:12,299 you’re going to have a new appetite. 234 00:15:13,359 –> 00:15:15,760 Birds have an appetite for worms. 235 00:15:16,659 –> 00:15:20,059 Cats have an appetite for meal mix. 236 00:15:21,320 –> 00:15:24,000 I don’t have an appetite for either of these things. 237 00:15:24,000 –> 00:15:24,840 Why? 238 00:15:24,840 –> 00:15:27,140 Because it’s not in my nature. 239 00:15:28,039 –> 00:15:30,559 Cats have an appetite for what cats love. 240 00:15:30,559 –> 00:15:32,859 Dogs have an appetite for what dogs love. 241 00:15:32,859 –> 00:15:35,260 Synners have an appetite for what sinners love 242 00:15:35,260 –> 00:15:36,539 and those who have been born again 243 00:15:37,020 –> 00:15:38,099 by the resurrection of Jesus Christ 244 00:15:38,099 –> 00:15:41,820 have an appetite for what Jesus Christ loves. 245 00:15:42,960 –> 00:15:45,460 Now of course, this is the great joy of the Christian life. 246 00:15:45,460 –> 00:15:49,239 It is not something that is imposed from outside of you. 247 00:15:50,380 –> 00:15:53,940 God creates a desire within you 248 00:15:53,940 –> 00:15:56,359 to live a new kind of life 249 00:15:56,359 –> 00:15:58,099 and you see, that’s real freedom. 250 00:15:58,099 –> 00:16:00,380 There is no greater freedom 251 00:16:01,619 –> 00:16:06,059 than when you want what God commands. 252 00:16:06,059 –> 00:16:07,820 That is freedom. 253 00:16:07,820 –> 00:16:11,359 To discover that what I most want in life 254 00:16:11,359 –> 00:16:14,919 turns out to be what God has called me to follow. 255 00:16:17,219 –> 00:16:19,979 Not only is there a new appetite that’s created, 256 00:16:19,979 –> 00:16:24,559 it’s a dimension of the new birth, but a new capacity. 257 00:16:24,559 –> 00:16:27,280 You see, nature determines not only appetite 258 00:16:27,280 –> 00:16:29,260 but it determines capacity. 259 00:16:30,080 –> 00:16:34,880 Dogs can’t fly, it’s not in their nature. 260 00:16:34,880 –> 00:16:39,239 Fish can’t run, it’s not in their nature. 261 00:16:39,239 –> 00:16:42,520 Sinners can’t live in the presence of God, 262 00:16:42,520 –> 00:16:44,200 it’s not in their nature. 263 00:16:44,200 –> 00:16:49,200 Sinners cannot obey the law of God, it’s not in their nature. 264 00:16:49,219 –> 00:16:50,880 You used to be in that position, 265 00:16:50,880 –> 00:16:52,640 but you have been born again. 266 00:16:52,640 –> 00:16:55,460 The spirit of God has come to live in you, 267 00:16:55,460 –> 00:16:58,479 giving you not only a desire, a disposition, 268 00:16:58,479 –> 00:17:00,559 and appetite for this new life, 269 00:17:00,580 –> 00:17:05,579 but the capacity to pursue it in the power of his spirit. 270 00:17:07,619 –> 00:17:09,199 Now you may have thought that all that happened 271 00:17:09,199 –> 00:17:12,699 was that you decided to follow Jesus and believe in him, 272 00:17:12,699 –> 00:17:16,099 and Peter’s saying there’s a whole world beyond that 273 00:17:16,099 –> 00:17:18,859 of what is going on here. 274 00:17:18,859 –> 00:17:22,420 Never underestimate the miracle that God has done 275 00:17:22,420 –> 00:17:25,260 in bringing you to faith in Jesus Christ. 276 00:17:25,260 –> 00:17:30,260 There is a new birth that has gone on inside of you. 277 00:17:31,500 –> 00:17:33,380 Well, maybe you’re saying at this point, 278 00:17:33,380 –> 00:17:35,300 well, how do I know if I am born again? 279 00:17:36,699 –> 00:17:40,060 I’m not sure I can name a time and a place. 280 00:17:41,339 –> 00:17:42,180 Well, I don’t know about you, 281 00:17:42,180 –> 00:17:44,339 but I personally don’t have vivid recollections 282 00:17:44,339 –> 00:17:46,420 of my physical birth. 283 00:17:46,420 –> 00:17:48,079 I’ve heard about it. 284 00:17:48,079 –> 00:17:50,140 Apparently I caused a lot of problems 285 00:17:50,140 –> 00:17:51,780 by refusing to get into the right position 286 00:17:51,780 –> 00:17:52,619 at the right time, 287 00:17:52,619 –> 00:17:55,780 but I don’t remember anything about it. 288 00:17:55,780 –> 00:18:00,280 The evidence that I was born is that I am alive. 289 00:18:01,420 –> 00:18:04,380 And the evidence that a person was born again 290 00:18:04,380 –> 00:18:06,920 is that they are living the new life, 291 00:18:06,920 –> 00:18:09,479 that they find that they have this new disposition, 292 00:18:09,479 –> 00:18:11,199 they have this new appetite, 293 00:18:11,199 –> 00:18:13,219 this hunger after the things of God, 294 00:18:13,219 –> 00:18:17,719 and the capacity to pursue it in the power of the Spirit. 295 00:18:18,680 –> 00:18:21,660 Now, when you see that that has happened in you 296 00:18:21,660 –> 00:18:23,619 and that this new life has begun, 297 00:18:24,500 –> 00:18:26,540 I think one of the natural questions is, 298 00:18:26,540 –> 00:18:28,739 well, now, why did it happen to me? 299 00:18:29,739 –> 00:18:30,699 Lord, why me? 300 00:18:32,400 –> 00:18:33,540 And Peter reminds us that 301 00:18:33,540 –> 00:18:35,780 there is only one answer to that question, 302 00:18:35,780 –> 00:18:37,780 the mercy of God. 303 00:18:37,780 –> 00:18:42,260 Verse three, in his great mercy, 304 00:18:42,260 –> 00:18:46,020 you have been born again. 305 00:18:47,199 –> 00:18:51,500 Now, there is no other explanation 306 00:18:51,500 –> 00:18:52,959 of the new birth than this. 307 00:18:53,880 –> 00:18:55,300 Birth happens to you. 308 00:18:55,300 –> 00:18:58,000 There’s not a lot that you contribute to it. 309 00:18:59,459 –> 00:19:02,800 And when you realize that the only explanation 310 00:19:02,800 –> 00:19:07,819 for this miracle in you is ultimately the mercy of God, 311 00:19:09,260 –> 00:19:12,500 it will leave you with a sense of awe 312 00:19:12,500 –> 00:19:16,459 and of mystery and of wonder 313 00:19:16,459 –> 00:19:17,300 and of worship. 314 00:19:19,079 –> 00:19:21,800 Why me, Lord? 315 00:19:23,920 –> 00:19:27,540 Why is it that people I know and love 316 00:19:27,560 –> 00:19:32,180 see no beauty in Jesus at all, 317 00:19:33,599 –> 00:19:37,380 but you opened my eyes so that I do. 318 00:19:40,000 –> 00:19:41,099 Why me? 319 00:19:44,760 –> 00:19:49,439 You will never answer that question except in these words, 320 00:19:49,439 –> 00:19:53,660 in his great mercy. 321 00:19:54,239 –> 00:19:58,760 God has been merciful to you. 322 00:20:00,180 –> 00:20:04,000 Let that lead you to worship. 323 00:20:05,420 –> 00:20:07,500 Now notice the results of this new birth. 324 00:20:07,500 –> 00:20:12,140 In his great mercy, he has given us new birth 325 00:20:12,140 –> 00:20:14,900 to a living hope through the resurrection 326 00:20:14,900 –> 00:20:17,180 of Jesus Christ from the dead. 327 00:20:17,180 –> 00:20:19,140 Now notice that this living hope 328 00:20:19,140 –> 00:20:21,479 that he speaks about flows directly 329 00:20:21,479 –> 00:20:23,099 from the resurrection of Jesus. 330 00:20:23,099 –> 00:20:26,859 So it’s important to keep these two phrases together. 331 00:20:26,859 –> 00:20:30,000 When Peter talks about living hope, 332 00:20:30,000 –> 00:20:33,280 he’s not talking about a more optimistic view of life. 333 00:20:33,280 –> 00:20:37,359 We’re not into the psychology of mind games here. 334 00:20:37,359 –> 00:20:39,719 You know, creating your own reality 335 00:20:39,719 –> 00:20:43,680 by being more positive in your outlook. 336 00:20:43,680 –> 00:20:46,760 Now we sometimes hear motivational speakers 337 00:20:46,760 –> 00:20:49,660 become very common in these days in the world of business. 338 00:20:49,660 –> 00:20:51,400 They say many good things 339 00:20:51,400 –> 00:20:53,079 and they’ll often speak like this. 340 00:20:53,219 –> 00:20:56,619 Think positive and then you’ll act positive. 341 00:20:56,619 –> 00:20:59,520 Fill your mind with positive thoughts and so forth. 342 00:20:59,520 –> 00:21:01,420 And what they’re saying is that 343 00:21:01,420 –> 00:21:03,540 if you think in this positive way, 344 00:21:03,540 –> 00:21:06,439 you will create a new reality around you. 345 00:21:07,660 –> 00:21:10,599 Now that may be good psychology 346 00:21:12,180 –> 00:21:16,420 but it is nothing whatever to do with Christianity. 347 00:21:16,420 –> 00:21:18,920 And it is very important that we understand the difference. 348 00:21:18,920 –> 00:21:22,939 There’s a lot of confusion at this point in our time. 349 00:21:23,760 –> 00:21:25,979 Look at what Peter says. 350 00:21:25,979 –> 00:21:29,619 The living hope that Peter speaks about 351 00:21:29,619 –> 00:21:32,219 is not the hope of more positive thinking or outlook. 352 00:21:32,219 –> 00:21:37,060 It is directly tied to the resurrection of Jesus. 353 00:21:38,079 –> 00:21:40,380 Jesus rose from the dead. 354 00:21:41,319 –> 00:21:44,680 Jesus broke the power of death. 355 00:21:44,680 –> 00:21:47,300 And through the new birth, what Peter is saying 356 00:21:47,300 –> 00:21:52,219 is that the victory of his resurrection touches you, 357 00:21:53,939 –> 00:21:57,239 God has brought you to share his triumph 358 00:21:57,239 –> 00:21:59,819 through your new birth. 359 00:21:59,819 –> 00:22:02,219 Death has no hold over him. 360 00:22:02,219 –> 00:22:04,680 He’s gone through it, and he’s ascended, 361 00:22:04,680 –> 00:22:06,859 and he’s on the throne in heaven. 362 00:22:06,859 –> 00:22:10,180 Death therefore can have no hold over you, 363 00:22:10,180 –> 00:22:12,859 nor can Satan, nor can sin, 364 00:22:12,859 –> 00:22:17,619 nor can hell because of the resurrection of Jesus Christ. 365 00:22:17,619 –> 00:22:19,699 Now, no wonder Peter says, 366 00:22:19,699 –> 00:22:24,699 praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ. 367 00:22:25,859 –> 00:22:28,819 You thought you just made a new decision to have faith? 368 00:22:28,819 –> 00:22:30,760 Let me tell you what’s happened. 369 00:22:30,760 –> 00:22:35,540 In his great mercy, he’s given you new birth. 370 00:22:35,540 –> 00:22:38,800 And in that way, he’s brought you into living hope 371 00:22:38,800 –> 00:22:41,540 through the resurrection of Jesus Christ 372 00:22:41,540 –> 00:22:44,400 from the dead. 373 00:22:44,400 –> 00:22:45,660 It’s almost worth an amen, 374 00:22:45,660 –> 00:22:47,339 and it’s only for the first point. 375 00:22:47,880 –> 00:22:49,540 It’s only verse three. 376 00:22:49,540 –> 00:22:52,099 Look at what he continues to say. 377 00:22:52,099 –> 00:22:55,180 Not only have you been born anew, 378 00:22:55,180 –> 00:22:58,500 you are kept by God’s power. 379 00:22:58,500 –> 00:23:03,500 Verse four, you’ve been born again into an inheritance 380 00:23:04,339 –> 00:23:08,760 that can never perish, spoil, or fade. 381 00:23:08,760 –> 00:23:11,079 And that’s kept in heaven for you. 382 00:23:11,079 –> 00:23:14,020 Who through faith are shielded by God’s power 383 00:23:14,020 –> 00:23:16,219 until the coming of the salvation 384 00:23:16,300 –> 00:23:19,020 that is ready to be revealed in the last time. 385 00:23:20,560 –> 00:23:25,260 Now notice here that God keeps two things. 386 00:23:25,260 –> 00:23:29,099 First, God keeps an inheritance for you. 387 00:23:30,180 –> 00:23:33,739 You’ve been born again into the family of God. 388 00:23:33,739 –> 00:23:35,739 And because you are a child of God, 389 00:23:35,739 –> 00:23:40,739 you have been born into this greatest of all families, 390 00:23:41,260 –> 00:23:44,760 therefore you share as a family member 391 00:23:44,760 –> 00:23:49,060 in the greatest of all inheritances. 392 00:23:49,060 –> 00:23:50,739 Being a member of God’s family, 393 00:23:50,739 –> 00:23:53,260 you have an inheritance in heaven 394 00:23:53,260 –> 00:23:55,339 and God will keep that for you 395 00:23:55,339 –> 00:23:58,500 until the day when Jesus Christ comes again 396 00:23:58,500 –> 00:23:59,900 in power and glory 397 00:23:59,900 –> 00:24:02,500 and he gathers all of the family of God 398 00:24:02,500 –> 00:24:05,520 into God’s immediate presence. 399 00:24:05,520 –> 00:24:08,680 God has a place in heaven for you. 400 00:24:09,540 –> 00:24:10,939 The reservation is made, 401 00:24:10,939 –> 00:24:12,540 the price of it has been paid 402 00:24:12,540 –> 00:24:14,680 by the blood of the Lord Jesus Christ, 403 00:24:14,680 –> 00:24:18,319 that inheritance has your name on it 404 00:24:18,319 –> 00:24:20,839 and when you see it, 405 00:24:20,839 –> 00:24:24,219 you will not be disappointed. 406 00:24:26,239 –> 00:24:30,020 But secondly, God not only keeps an inheritance for you, 407 00:24:30,020 –> 00:24:34,680 notice that he keeps you for the inheritance. 408 00:24:34,680 –> 00:24:36,939 You are shielded, he says, 409 00:24:36,939 –> 00:24:39,380 by God’s power. 410 00:24:40,400 –> 00:24:41,319 Now, wouldn’t it be a tragedy 411 00:24:41,319 –> 00:24:42,920 if God kept an inheritance for you 412 00:24:42,920 –> 00:24:44,640 but somehow you didn’t make it to heaven 413 00:24:44,680 –> 00:24:46,119 to enjoy the inheritance? 414 00:24:48,479 –> 00:24:50,619 Well now, Peter says that’s not gonna happen 415 00:24:50,619 –> 00:24:53,000 because those who have faith in Jesus Christ 416 00:24:53,000 –> 00:24:55,119 are kept by Jesus Christ. 417 00:24:55,119 –> 00:24:58,119 You are shielded by his power. 418 00:24:59,280 –> 00:25:01,180 In other words, 419 00:25:01,180 –> 00:25:02,800 your final salvation 420 00:25:02,800 –> 00:25:05,239 does not in the end depend 421 00:25:05,239 –> 00:25:09,319 on the strength of your grasp of Jesus Christ. 422 00:25:09,319 –> 00:25:11,319 It depends in the end 423 00:25:11,319 –> 00:25:15,640 on the strength of Jesus Christ’s grasp on you. 424 00:25:15,640 –> 00:25:17,760 If my salvation ultimately depended 425 00:25:17,760 –> 00:25:20,800 on the strength of my faith holding on to Jesus, 426 00:25:20,800 –> 00:25:23,160 I would be very doubtful about it. 427 00:25:23,160 –> 00:25:26,260 But finally Peter says it does not depend on that, 428 00:25:26,260 –> 00:25:29,040 but it depends on the strength of Jesus Christ 429 00:25:29,040 –> 00:25:30,199 holding on to you. 430 00:25:30,199 –> 00:25:33,140 His hands are much stronger than my hands 431 00:25:33,140 –> 00:25:35,239 and that is the basis 432 00:25:35,239 –> 00:25:39,939 of Christian confidence and humility and assurance. 433 00:25:40,780 –> 00:25:42,219 Now try and get this beautiful picture. 434 00:25:42,219 –> 00:25:45,079 Think of the two hands of Jesus. 435 00:25:45,079 –> 00:25:47,819 The hands that were pierced for you and for me. 436 00:25:49,300 –> 00:25:53,060 And then one of them He holds an inheritance for you 437 00:25:54,260 –> 00:25:58,380 and then the other He holds you for the inheritance. 438 00:25:59,619 –> 00:26:02,900 And these things are held in His strong hand, Peter says, 439 00:26:02,900 –> 00:26:05,380 until the day when he brings the whole family 440 00:26:05,380 –> 00:26:07,079 into His immediate presence 441 00:26:07,079 –> 00:26:09,619 and on that day he will bring what he holds 442 00:26:09,619 –> 00:26:11,560 in His two hands together. 443 00:26:11,560 –> 00:26:14,239 He will bring you into your inheritance 444 00:26:14,239 –> 00:26:17,959 and you will not be disappointed. 445 00:26:19,939 –> 00:26:24,300 You’ve been born again and you’re kept. 446 00:26:25,839 –> 00:26:28,880 Peter says, in this you greatly rejoice. 447 00:26:30,400 –> 00:26:32,239 Though notice the honesty of the Bible. 448 00:26:32,239 –> 00:26:34,920 He goes on immediately to talk about the trials, 449 00:26:34,920 –> 00:26:36,439 the sorrows, and the suffering 450 00:26:36,439 –> 00:26:40,280 that we may experience in the Christian life. 451 00:26:40,280 –> 00:26:43,280 And he makes this point which is so important. 452 00:26:43,280 –> 00:26:48,280 That your trials will show that your faith is authentic. 453 00:26:49,319 –> 00:26:50,839 Look at verse six and seven. 454 00:26:50,839 –> 00:26:52,680 In this you greatly rejoice 455 00:26:52,680 –> 00:26:54,319 though now for a little while you may have had 456 00:26:54,319 –> 00:26:57,160 to suffer grief in all kinds of trials. 457 00:26:57,160 –> 00:27:02,160 These have come so that your faith may be proved genuine 458 00:27:03,160 –> 00:27:05,719 and may result in praise, glory and honor 459 00:27:05,719 –> 00:27:09,280 when Jesus Christ is revealed. 460 00:27:11,000 –> 00:27:15,660 Now, if you have something that might be of great value, 461 00:27:16,920 –> 00:27:21,680 you will want to know for sure if it is authentic 462 00:27:22,500 –> 00:27:25,040 and you will seize any opportunity 463 00:27:25,040 –> 00:27:27,400 that comes your way to prove it. 464 00:27:28,400 –> 00:27:30,800 That is why the Antiques Roadshow, of course, 465 00:27:31,180 –> 00:27:33,920 has been such an outstanding success. 466 00:27:33,920 –> 00:27:35,959 The experts arrive in the city 467 00:27:35,959 –> 00:27:37,880 and people come from all over the area 468 00:27:37,880 –> 00:27:40,079 bringing their antiques and they’re asking the question, 469 00:27:40,079 –> 00:27:41,780 what is this worth? 470 00:27:41,780 –> 00:27:44,199 They want to know is this genuine, 471 00:27:44,199 –> 00:27:46,040 is this thing authentic? 472 00:27:46,040 –> 00:27:47,540 Because if it is, I’m rich. 473 00:27:47,540 –> 00:27:49,939 And if it isn’t, I’m not. 474 00:27:51,079 –> 00:27:56,079 I think that this might be a Ming vase, 475 00:27:56,380 –> 00:27:58,099 vase, vase. 476 00:27:58,619 –> 00:27:59,459 vase. 477 00:28:00,339 –> 00:28:03,819 Could you please tell me, is it authentic? 478 00:28:03,819 –> 00:28:07,060 There’s an eagerness when someone comes 479 00:28:07,060 –> 00:28:08,619 with this kind of question. 480 00:28:10,400 –> 00:28:13,520 Now, your faith, Peter says, 481 00:28:14,459 –> 00:28:18,640 is of far greater value than a Ming v base. 482 00:28:19,920 –> 00:28:24,020 It is of far greater value than a Rembrandt painting. 483 00:28:25,219 –> 00:28:27,180 Using the only appropriate category 484 00:28:27,420 –> 00:28:29,439 he can find writing in the first century, 485 00:28:29,439 –> 00:28:34,439 Peter says, your faith is of greater worth than gold. 486 00:28:36,300 –> 00:28:38,819 Because gold, like every other created thing 487 00:28:38,819 –> 00:28:40,800 will eventually perish. 488 00:28:40,800 –> 00:28:42,739 It will not last for eternity. 489 00:28:42,739 –> 00:28:46,739 But your faith, if it is authentic, 490 00:28:46,739 –> 00:28:49,380 will last for all eternity. 491 00:28:51,099 –> 00:28:55,020 So, this is something of incredible value. 492 00:28:55,040 –> 00:28:56,760 And the obvious question is, 493 00:28:56,760 –> 00:29:00,819 how can I know if my faith is authentic? 494 00:29:00,819 –> 00:29:03,300 You ever asked that question? 495 00:29:03,300 –> 00:29:08,199 How do I know if it’s not just a passing phase? 496 00:29:08,199 –> 00:29:11,839 How do I know if I’ve got the real thing, the real deal? 497 00:29:11,839 –> 00:29:14,680 Well, Peter tells us. 498 00:29:14,680 –> 00:29:19,619 When you suffer grief, in all kinds of trials, 499 00:29:19,619 –> 00:29:21,939 you will have all the evidence that you need 500 00:29:21,939 –> 00:29:24,280 that your faith is authentic. 501 00:29:24,319 –> 00:29:25,420 And here’s why. 502 00:29:26,640 –> 00:29:29,520 If your faith was simply a human decision 503 00:29:29,520 –> 00:29:33,780 or a passing phase or a religious interest, 504 00:29:33,780 –> 00:29:38,239 then as soon as you began to suffer, 505 00:29:38,239 –> 00:29:40,199 you would turn away from God. 506 00:29:40,199 –> 00:29:43,000 You would renounce your faith. 507 00:29:43,000 –> 00:29:44,760 You would spend the rest of your life 08 00:29:44,760 –> 00:29:46,520 either saying, as some people do, 509 00:29:46,520 –> 00:29:49,760 I could never believe in God. 510 00:29:51,000 –> 00:29:52,959 Or you would spend the rest of your life 511 00:29:53,160 –> 00:29:58,160 alternatively smoldering away in bitterness against God. 512 00:30:00,479 –> 00:30:03,079 Now, you know people like that, as I do. 513 00:30:05,280 –> 00:30:10,280 The big question is, why isn’t everybody like that? 514 00:30:14,280 –> 00:30:19,280 Why is it that there are people 515 00:30:19,300 –> 00:30:22,560 in this congregation this morning 516 00:30:23,939 –> 00:30:28,939 who struggle still with unanswered questions, 517 00:30:29,319 –> 00:30:32,560 who have disappointed hopes, shattered dreams, 518 00:30:32,560 –> 00:30:37,560 who have lost loved ones, who have lost jobs, 519 00:30:37,699 –> 00:30:41,119 who have suffered illness or sometimes violence 520 00:30:41,119 –> 00:30:43,859 or some other personal catastrophe 521 00:30:43,859 –> 00:30:48,859 and still believe in Jesus and still love him? 522 00:30:49,660 –> 00:30:54,359 How can that be? 523 00:30:56,260 –> 00:30:57,699 And there is only one answer 524 00:30:57,699 –> 00:31:01,359 and that is your faith is a miracle. 525 00:31:01,359 –> 00:31:04,459 It is the genuine article. 526 00:31:04,459 –> 00:31:07,160 It is the seed of the life of God 527 00:31:07,160 –> 00:31:09,239 that has been planted within your soul 528 00:31:09,239 –> 00:31:10,939 and it is indestructible. 529 00:31:12,140 –> 00:31:15,040 It is like a bulb that gets planted in the ground 530 00:31:15,040 –> 00:31:18,280 and dirt gets thrown on top of it and buries it. 531 00:31:18,300 –> 00:31:22,819 But it does not die because it has life in it. 532 00:31:24,239 –> 00:31:26,099 You’ve gone through all these trials. 533 00:31:26,099 –> 00:31:28,699 You’ve faced all these unanswered questions. 534 00:31:28,699 –> 00:31:31,199 You cannot even see Jesus Christ. 535 00:31:31,199 –> 00:31:33,800 But verse eight, notice how Peter puts it, 536 00:31:33,800 –> 00:31:38,420 you love him, you still believe in him. 537 00:31:38,420 –> 00:31:41,739 There can be no greater evidence 538 00:31:41,739 –> 00:31:46,160 of the authenticity of your faith than that. 539 00:31:47,020 –> 00:31:50,140 And just so you know, Peter says, 540 00:31:51,020 –> 00:31:55,780 that faith proved genuine through trials 541 00:31:55,780 –> 00:31:59,859 in your life, is one day going to rebound 542 00:31:59,859 –> 00:32:03,719 and result in praise and glory and honor 543 00:32:03,719 –> 00:32:05,880 when Jesus Christ is revealed. 544 00:32:05,880 –> 00:32:10,880 One day, God is going to wipe every tear from your eyes 545 00:32:12,099 –> 00:32:15,819 and he’s going to say, well done, to you. 546 00:32:16,520 –> 00:32:21,520 Good and faithful servant, enter into your master’s joy. 547 00:32:26,540 –> 00:32:30,880 Now, when you suffer grief 548 00:32:30,880 –> 00:32:33,959 in all kinds of trials, hold on to this. 549 00:32:35,280 –> 00:32:38,160 The fact that, with all your unanswered questions 550 00:32:38,160 –> 00:32:40,479 and all your unresolved pain, 551 00:32:40,479 –> 00:32:44,420 you still love Jesus, you still believe in him, 552 00:32:45,420 –> 00:32:50,420 shows that you have something of infinite value. 553 00:32:53,859 –> 00:32:55,339 And you know, I think I can honestly say 554 00:32:55,339 –> 00:33:00,140 that I’m grateful for discovering that in my own life, 555 00:33:01,979 –> 00:33:05,579 because if my faith wasn’t the real deal, 556 00:33:07,060 –> 00:33:08,420 I’d want to find out, 557 00:33:09,900 –> 00:33:11,959 so I can get a real faith 558 00:33:12,339 –> 00:33:13,900 before I go to eternity. 559 00:33:17,939 –> 00:33:20,319 And look at how blessed you are, Peter’s saying. 560 00:33:20,319 –> 00:33:21,359 You’re born again. 561 00:33:22,719 –> 00:33:25,300 You are kept by the power of God. 562 00:33:27,119 –> 00:33:29,599 You do experience grief and all kinds of trials, 563 00:33:29,599 –> 00:33:31,500 but look what happens in this. 564 00:33:31,500 –> 00:33:36,560 It proves the authenticity of your faith. 565 00:33:36,560 –> 00:33:39,119 Nothing in the world is more valuable than that. 566 00:33:39,780 –> 00:33:42,520 And finally, Peter says you have received 567 00:33:42,520 –> 00:33:46,160 what others have longed for. 568 00:33:46,160 –> 00:33:48,739 Very briefly, verses 10 to 12. 569 00:33:48,739 –> 00:33:52,760 Notice Peter speaks here about prophets and about angels. 570 00:33:52,760 –> 00:33:55,239 He tells us, verse 10, that the prophets were searching 571 00:33:55,239 –> 00:33:57,239 intently and with great care, 572 00:33:57,239 –> 00:33:58,959 and that they were trying to work out 573 00:33:58,959 –> 00:34:00,680 the time and the circumstances 574 00:34:00,680 –> 00:34:03,479 to which the spirit of Christ in them was pointing 575 00:34:03,479 –> 00:34:07,920 when they predicted the sufferings of the world. 576 00:34:08,760 –> 00:34:10,959 And when they predicted the sufferings 577 00:34:10,959 –> 00:34:13,540 and the glories of Jesus. 578 00:34:13,540 –> 00:34:17,139 He is reminding us that since the beginning of time, 579 00:34:17,139 –> 00:34:21,600 God has promised that he would intervene in human history 580 00:34:21,600 –> 00:34:26,580 to lift the curse and to redeem a people for himself. 581 00:34:27,639 –> 00:34:29,820 And all through human history, 582 00:34:29,820 –> 00:34:32,979 from the time Adam and Eve were evicted from the garden, 583 00:34:32,979 –> 00:34:35,120 there has been a search to know exactly 584 00:34:35,159 –> 00:34:36,959 how God would do this.” 585 00:34:36,959 –> 00:34:38,600 The prophets spoke about it 586 00:34:38,600 –> 00:34:41,300 as the Holy Spirit gave words to them, 587 00:34:41,300 –> 00:34:43,520 but they did not understand the full significance 588 00:34:43,520 –> 00:34:46,080 of the words that they spoke. 589 00:34:46,080 –> 00:34:48,840 They longed to know more. 590 00:34:48,840 –> 00:34:51,840 They only saw it from a distance. 591 00:34:51,840 –> 00:34:53,639 Now it says Peter, 592 00:34:53,639 –> 00:34:58,639 you have come to know and love Jesus Christ. 593 00:34:58,860 –> 00:35:00,719 Jesus Christ. 594 00:35:01,760 –> 00:35:06,399 God’s spirit lives in you. 595 00:35:07,439 –> 00:35:11,020 You have been born again. 596 00:35:12,979 –> 00:35:17,479 You have what prophets longed for. 597 00:35:18,639 –> 00:35:23,639 Isaiah, Jeremiah, Hosea, Joel, Amos 598 00:35:24,239 –> 00:35:27,500 would’ve loved to have what you’ve got 599 00:35:27,500 –> 00:35:30,139 in Jesus Christ now. 600 00:35:31,979 –> 00:35:34,820 And not only that, he tells us verse 12 601 00:35:34,820 –> 00:35:38,679 that angels longed to look into these things. 602 00:35:39,560 –> 00:35:44,280 You see, the son of God at the right hand of the father 603 00:35:45,260 –> 00:35:47,580 never became an angel. 604 00:35:49,219 –> 00:35:51,899 But the son of God at the right hand of the father 605 00:35:51,899 –> 00:35:54,379 did become a man. 606 00:35:56,419 –> 00:36:01,260 Angels see the glory of God and they are servants of God, 607 00:36:02,780 –> 00:36:06,479 but in God’s son Jesus Christ, 608 00:36:06,479 –> 00:36:11,479 you become his son, his daughter, a member of his family. 609 00:36:12,439 –> 00:36:15,780 There was a big difference between a servant and a son. 610 00:36:17,620 –> 00:36:21,280 And the angels look at this and they cannot fathom 611 00:36:21,300 –> 00:36:26,300 what must it be for a sinner to experience grace? 612 00:36:28,959 –> 00:36:33,239 What must it be like to be forgiven 613 00:36:33,239 –> 00:36:37,159 and to know that you’ve been washed in the blood of Jesus? 614 00:36:38,840 –> 00:36:41,060 What must it be like for these humans 615 00:36:41,060 –> 00:36:44,419 to know that Jesus Christ has become one with them? 616 00:36:44,419 –> 00:36:49,239 What must it be like to be included in God’s family 617 00:36:49,239 –> 00:36:54,239 to be his Son and for his spirit to dwell in you? 618 00:36:57,600 –> 00:36:59,639 You think angels have got one up on you? 619 00:37:00,679 –> 00:37:04,560 Well, sure they see the glory of God, 620 00:37:06,479 –> 00:37:09,399 but they long to look into 621 00:37:11,280 –> 00:37:16,219 what’s going on by the work of the Spirit of God in you. 622 00:37:20,199 –> 00:37:25,080 Now do you see the breathtaking privilege of all of this? 623 00:37:26,560 –> 00:37:27,959 You’ve been born again, 624 00:37:29,100 –> 00:37:30,620 you are kept by God’s power, 625 00:37:30,620 –> 00:37:34,280 even when you go through grief in all kinds of trials, 626 00:37:34,280 –> 00:37:36,360 there is a demonstration in that 627 00:37:36,360 –> 00:37:38,179 of the authenticity of your faith, 628 00:37:38,179 –> 00:37:40,360 which is more of value than anything else 629 00:37:40,360 –> 00:37:41,520 in all of the world, 630 00:37:41,520 –> 00:37:44,739 and you have received what other have longed for. 631 00:37:44,739 –> 00:37:46,280 What prophets have longed for, 632 00:37:46,280 –> 00:37:48,360 what angels have longed for. 633 00:37:48,479 –> 00:37:49,780 Well, you’ve got. 634 00:37:52,959 –> 00:37:54,959 And so it’s no wonder, is it then, 635 00:37:54,959 –> 00:37:57,459 in verse eight that Peter says, 636 00:37:57,459 –> 00:38:02,459 You are filled with an inexpressible and glorious joy. 637 00:38:06,060 –> 00:38:07,620 Now notice he does not say, 638 00:38:08,979 –> 00:38:11,120 you Christians really ought to be 639 00:38:11,120 –> 00:38:13,540 filled with an inexpressible and glorious joy, 640 00:38:13,540 –> 00:38:15,540 there’s no use in that kind of message. 641 00:38:16,320 –> 00:38:18,780 What he says to us is, you are. 642 00:38:20,560 –> 00:38:24,919 When you grasp the full significance 643 00:38:24,919 –> 00:38:28,080 of what God has done for you in Jesus Christ, 644 00:38:28,080 –> 00:38:33,080 you will be filled with an inexpressible and glorious joy. 645 00:38:34,840 –> 00:38:37,540 What words that you could choose 646 00:38:37,540 –> 00:38:40,639 could ever express the dimensions 647 00:38:40,639 –> 00:38:43,659 of what God has done for you in Jesus Christ? 648 00:38:43,659 –> 00:38:44,500 There are none. 649 00:38:46,100 –> 00:38:49,000 Realize what God has done for you. 650 00:38:49,000 –> 00:38:50,760 You’ve been born again. 651 00:38:52,100 –> 00:38:54,320 You’re kept by his power. 652 00:38:55,479 –> 00:38:57,739 In the greatest suffering and grief of your life, 653 00:38:57,739 –> 00:39:00,580 the authenticity of your faith is demonstrated. 654 00:39:00,580 –> 00:39:03,159 And you have received what angels 655 00:39:03,159 –> 00:39:05,600 and what prophets would long for. 656 00:39:07,919 –> 00:39:10,659 Everything that God has planned for mankind 657 00:39:10,699 –> 00:39:13,500 is taking place in your soul. 658 00:39:13,500 –> 00:39:16,659 And in the middle of it all, 659 00:39:16,659 –> 00:39:21,659 you are receiving the goal of your faith, 660 00:39:23,600 –> 00:39:27,540 which is the salvation of your soul.